Surface Roughness and Material Removal Rate of Lapping Process on Ceramics

Lapping is a widely used surface finishing process for ceramics. An experimental investigation is conducted into the lapping of alumina, Ni-Zn ferrite and sodium silicate glass using SiC abrasive to study the effect of process parameters, such as abrasive particle size, lapping pressure, and abrasive concentration, on the surface roughness and material removal rate during lapping. A simple model is developed based on the indentation fracture and abrasive particle distribution in the slurry to explain various aspects of the lapping process. The model provides predictions for the surface roughness,R ^sub a^ andR ^sub t^, on the machined surface and rough estimation for the material removal rate during lapping. Comparison of the predictions with the experimental measurements reveals same order of magnitude accuracy.[PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]